Internet safety and the ethical use of technology in the classroom are essential to a student's academic success. Internet security ensures that technologies used in the classroom remain operational without problems and protects students from Internet predators. Ethical guidelines ensure appropriate use of technology that does not violate school rules or laws put in place by federal and state governments. There are several reasons why internet security is vital for the classroom. The most important reason is to maintain a fully functional operating system, free from problems such as slow computer programs and hard drive damage caused by computer program viruses. Students often download these viruses unknowingly because every executable file found on the Internet potentially contains a harmful computer virus that can be downloaded to the classroom computer system. Some viruses come in simple forms that copy themselves to every computer file on your hard drive every time a student uses an infected program. There are also email viruses that can download the computer's email address books and send bulk (sometimes unwanted) emails. -ethics) to everyone on these lists, the most devastating virus is known as Trojan which causes the most damage because it is capable of erasing files and programs as well as completely erasing the hard drive, and then there are worms that copy themselves across as many computer networks as they can access, slowing down the speed of computer network operations (Brain, 2000). The only way to combat this problem is to run a reliable antivirus program, like Norton AntiVirus made by Symantec Corporation, which is reliable and capable of protecting all ......middle of paper ......irus Work. HowStuffWorks, Inc. Retrieved September 4, 2011 from: http://computer.howstuffworks.com/virus.htmStarr, L. (2003). Tools for teaching cyberethics. World of education. Accessed September 4, 2011 at: http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/tech/tech055.shtmlStop Child Predators. (2010). Press Release: Stop Child Predators Supports Legislation Restricting Access to Child Pornography on Government Computers. Stop Internet Predators. Accessed September 4, 2011 at: http://www.stopinternetpredators.org/press-release-stop-child-predators-supports-legislation-restricting-access-to-child-pornography-on-government-computers/Tonarely, K (nd). Effective classroom management strategies for technology. eHow. Accessed September 4, 2011 at: http://www.ehow.com/list_6618516_effective-classroom-management-strategies-technology.html